Raised With Beasts
by Anubis Enfield
Summary: I may not remember much from before I came to this world, but I remembered this. I was in the anime 'Naruto'. I nearly died before even getting anywhere. Animals were all I knew. But now I'm stuck with some group of kits with a lone wolf of a man. Great.
1. Chapter 1

**Was looking for a fox skull at the time and got this idea out of nowhere.**

* * *

I stared over the expanse of the Konoha village, my violet eyes peeking out from the sockets of the skull that covered my face.

"I finally made it." I murmured into the wind as a pitch black crow cawed and landed on my shoulder.

Stroking it's feathers, I jumped from the top of the tree where I was at and landed with a soft 'thump' on the grass below. I had been in this world for ten years now and knew how things worked around here at this point. Unfortunately, back when I first found myself here, things didn't quite work out the way I wanted them to.

When I was seventeen, I found myself lost in the middle of a desert which I later found out was on the outskirts of the Land of Wind. I nearly died before I reached Sunagakure, but I barely made it only to end up getting attacked and chased out by a group of thugs. After that I had been wandering aimlessly from region to region until I came across a place that I should have avoided.

Kusagakure was not really the best place to end up. The beasts that lived in that forest were more than happy to show me my place at the bottom of the food chain, but upon my discovery of chakra, I taught myself how to fight with what skills I already knew, and slowly moved up. When I managed to learn to survive well enough off the land, I began to move about once more, using the skull of a ram I killed as a mask. While in the forests though, I encountered animals that I wished I hadn't.

Bears, in particular seemed to have an extreme dislike for me and nearly killed me on more than one occasion. Wolves were a bit better, and once I displayed my dominance, they became friendly. Panthers and leopards were a bit harder to handle, but after dealing with one the others stayed away unless they were needed. The worst things I had to deal with though, were the people.

They didn't seem to particularly like me stealing from them when I needed food or water. And with the skull covering the scars on my face, it was understandable that they would see me as a threat. It was a long and hard road though and, once I figured out where I was, I decided to head out to where I knew everything was going to happen; Konohagakure. After all, I may not remember much from before I came to this world, but I remembered this. I was in the anime 'Naruto'. _Though I still have no clue how I got here to begin with. I don't remember anything before I came here, actually, other than that I'm in an anime or manga...Whichever. I don't even know where I am at in the plot. Not to mention the plot is a bit foggy too._

I mentally sighed and easily snuck into the village with a group of merchants who didn't notice the one extra person who kept their face hidden with a cloak—my skull having been hidden for the moment. Not wanting to catch attention, I snuck away from the people and went into the forest, replacing my ram skull and making friends with the local critters. When it grew dark though, I found a nice tree to sleep in and made sure to keep my hand on the small knife in my pants pocket. One can never be too careful in a new territory.

* * *

"You're late!" Three voices yelled and I nearly fell out of the tree at the rude awakening. Crow quickly went up to get an aerial view on what was going on and reported from the skies. From what he said, there were three kids and an adult. I should mention though, that Crow and most other animals have a peculiar way of speaking about people. Each person is related to some animal. So in actuality, Crow told me a short description of the four people.

 _A fidgety bunny, a silent crow, a loud fox kit, and a lone wolf. The wolf is the one I need to look out for._ I kept my presence hidden and asked Crow with bird chirps if I could get closer. A caw from him informed me that it was possible but that the crow and the wolf were ones to be careful of. I told Crow to keep an eye on them and crept closer.

The scene seemed familiar to me. The people were obviously the four main characters, that much I could remember, but what they were currently doing had me a bit confused. _I hate when I can't remember something important. That red headed kid in Sunagakure gave me the same feeling._ Taking my perch in a densely shaded tree, Crow informed me of no changes and settled himself down across the way in another tree.

"But you'll be in danger!" A pink headed girl called out, and I pinned her as the rabbit, Saku—something.

"Yeah, you're so slow you can't even dodge a blackboard eraser! We'll kill you!" That was the fox kit, or as I know him, Naruto.

"In the real world, those with no talent often bark the loudest. Well, ignore Mr. Dead Last and start when I say." _The wolf, Scarecrow...No, Kakashi. He has a point. Those that make loud noises normally are only trying to appear bigger and more threatening than they really are._

Suddenly, Naruto grew angry and pulled out a kunai, charging at Kakashi brashly. Almost faster than I could see, the boy had his own weapon pointed at the back of his neck while Kakashi had barely moved an inch. _He's fast._

"Well, it seems like you're prepared to come at me with an intent to kill. So you finally acknowledged me?" He chuckled. "Seems like I'm beginning to like you guys. Okay, let's get going. Ready…start!"

The three, well I should say two, dashed into the forest below me. I tensed, but neither of them saw me, so I relaxed. They were pretty obvious though. I could feel their chakra even though they were hiding fairly well.

"The basics of a ninja are to hide yourself well." Kakashi said, rubbing the back of his head, but I could tell that he knew where they were and that he narrowed his eyes in my general direction.

 _I need to move. He knows something is off, but he isn't sure what and will probably come to investigate when the kids aren't paying attention._ Heeding my own advice, I silently moved further back into the forest and made my way around to another side that was still in sight of what was happening. I had missed something, apparently, since Kakashi was now holding a book and had most likely said something that upset Naruto…again.

"I'll beat you to a pulp!" The boy shouted, going to kick Kakashi in the head.

Kakashi ducked but Naruto recovered quickly and went to punch him, however he wasn't quick enough and Kakashi ended up behind him.

"Huh?"

"A ninja isn't supposed to get caught from behind, idiot."

 _That seal…_ I thought, looking at the hand-sign Kakashi was making. _It's a fire seal, but I doubt he would hurt one of the kids with a jutsu from that distance._

"Naruto! Get out of there! You're going to get killed!"

I rolled my eyes as the rabbit gave away her position and only confused Naruto more. Unfortunately for him, Kakashi wasn't doing a jutsu. _I think he would have preferred one though._ I sweat dropped as Kakashi shoved his fingers…well, you don't need to know.

"Hidden Leaf Ancient Taijutsu Supreme Technique, A Thousand Years of Pain!"

Naruto was launched into the lake and not long after, a couple of shuriken flew out aiming at Kakashi. He easily caught them though, not even looking away from his book. Naruto then came out of the lake coughing, but I knew something was up.

"Hey, what's wrong? If you don't get a bell by noon, no lunch."

"I know that!" Naruto shouted angrily.

"You sure are weak for someone who's going to surpass Hokage."

I mentally sighed, he was obviously just riling Naruto up. _Anger only causes mistakes._ Just then though, a bunch of Naruto's launched themselves from the lake and my eyes widened for a millisecond. _They all have chakra._

"Hah! My specialty, Kage Bushin no Jutsu! You better not get careless, there's more than one of me now!"

Kakashi was calm though and he lowered his voice a tad so I couldn't make out what he said next. What I did see though, was another Naruto clone jumping on his back, surprising him.

"Weren't ninjas not supposed to get caught from behind? Right, Kakashi-sensei?! Using Kage Bushin, I sent a clone out of the water to sneak around behind you! My ass is still hurting! Here comes revenge!"

Kakashi was still too calm though and when Naruto went to punch the man, I felt a presence nearby. _Not good. He may not have found me, but he's damn close._ I changed hiding places once more and watched as Naruto fell for a pretty stupid trap. By the time he was hanging upside-down, I knew that the Kakashi there was a fake and that Sasuke's attack wasn't actually killing him. Once he figured it out though, I knew Kakashi had him pinpointed even when he moved.

It wasn't long after that, that I heard the rabbit scream and I assumed that she had fallen for a genjutsu; something I had become eerily familiar with during my travels. Since she was in a direction close to my place, I went over towards Naruto, hoping that his chakra might be able to keep me hidden for a while longer.

"'Underneath the underneath'! What a moron! Damn it! I'm not going to fall for his stupid trap again!" Unfortunately for him, he did and was once more strung up by his ankle. "No! Damn it! The same exact trap right underneath me!"

I mentally scoffed, but reluctantly decided to help him out a bit. I was out of his sight anyway, so I threw a left over kunai from one of their attacks at the rope and let him fall to the ground.

"Ow! Sasuke-teme!"

I ignored his shout and decided that I was probably going to get caught sooner or later so I might as well watch the battle between Kakashi and Sasuke. I whistled for Crow to keep an eye on Naruto and headed over to where I felt the two chakra signatures. By the time I got there though, the battle was already half-way over with. The two had just managed to push each other away from one another and Sasuke had touched a bell in the process.

"Well, I will acknowledge that you are different from the other two."

Sasuke didn't seem to want to accept that and went through a series of hand-signs, one of which I recognized as 'fire'. Mentally cursing, I jumped away and decided that now would be a good time to head away from there before I got burnt to a crisp by his fire technique as well. I didn't get very far though, when a caw informed me that Naruto had gotten caught by a clone.

"Not good." I muttered, only to have to abruptly stop as a kunai landed in the tree I was on, mere centimeters from hitting my mask.

Kakashi crouched on a nearby tree, spinning another kunai on his finger as he eyed me.

"So you're the one who's been spying on us. I never expected someone like you to get in here."

I frowned behind the skull. "'Someone like me'?"

He raised a brow. "You don't know? 'The Black Ram', 'The Shadow of Death'. You have quite a number of names in the bingo book now."

I tensed slightly, having had no idea that I had somehow wormed my way into the bingo books. "I…did not know. I was actually trying to avoid that, if at all possible. Does it say what I'm in there for?"

His eyes narrowed at me, and he caught the kunai in his hand tensely. "You do know that I'm not going to fall for you tricks. I'll take you to the Hokage no matter what."

I nodded. "I was actually counting on it. I need to speak with him anyway. I was just wondering what I did that would cause me to end up in the bingo book."

I reached to get mine, and the kunai he was holding lodged itself next to my head again, cutting my right arm. I glanced up at him and held my other arm up, continuing to reach into my black cloak until I pulled out a dirtied black book and tossed it to him.

"As you can see," I said. "my book is a bit outdated."

He glanced at the first page and frowned. "I can see that. If you really want to know, you're in it for thievery from many important leaders, including the Kazekage."

I nodded. "Ah. I thought that building was a bit lavish."

"You think this is a joke?"

I shook my head. "Not at all. But shouldn't you be taking me into custody? You timer is about to go off."

Sure enough, a loud alarm rang throughout the forest and he sighed, shaking his head and tucking my bingo book into his green vest.

"My, my. This certainly is the first time I've run into someone so cooperative. You're an odd one."

I held out my hands so he could bind them, staring emotionlessly as he turned me around to tie my hands behind my back.

"So I've been told. Please don't remove my mask though."

"Hm?"

"I'd rather not have people see my face…I'm…I've always been hated for it."

He gave me a look after he wrapped more rope around my torso to hold my arms down, but didn't question it as he led me through the forest to the stumps where Naruto was tied and Crow was cawing at him as he yelled angrily.

"I said go away! You stupid bird!"

I gave a small smile, but whistled for Crow who immediately stopped bothering Naruto and gave Kakashi a look.

"Friend of yours?" Kakashi asked.

"Yeah. The only one who's decided to stay around me long enough."

I whistled again and Crow landed on my shoulder, still giving Kakashi a look. Kakashi returned the look with a raised brow, and Crow asked me about him and if I needed help. It was a bit hard to explain that, no, this is what I wanted.

"What are you doing?" Kakashi asked, and I notice that him and Naruto were both giving me strange looks.

"I was explaining to him that I don't need help trying to get away from you, because I'm not trying to get away."

Kakashi just shook his head and led me to one of the other posts to tie me to.

"I take it we're not leaving to see the Hokage yet?" I asked.

"No. Since you're not trying to escape, I can finish up what I was planning on doing here first. It won't take long, but if you do try to escape…" He glared and I stared back evenly. "Don't think I won't hesitate to kill you."

"Okay." I said blankly, and Naruto sweat dropped before turning to him.

"Neh, who's this, Kaka-sensei?"

"I'll explain when the other two get here." He said and we only had to wait a little bit before Sasuke and the rabbit came through the trees, both giving me a look.

"Sensei?" The girl asked. "Who's this?"

"I am a person tied to a stump." I replied calmly and a tick mark appeared on her forehead.

Kakashi sighed. "This is a high level thief I caught spying on us. I will be taking him to the Hokage momentarily, but I thought I should deal with you three first."

A low growl echoed through all of their stomachs as well as mine, earning me another look.

"Apologies. I didn't catch breakfast."

They all sweat dropped and turned to Kakashi.

"Seems all of you are really hungry. By the way, something about the training…Well, there's no need for you guys to go back to the academy."

The two of them cheered, Sasuke staying quiet but still smirking, and I swore that there was something fake about Kakashi's smile.

"Then, then…All three of us…!"

"Yup, all three of you…should quit as ninjas!"

I wasn't sure what was going on, but Naruto's shout had me wince.

"Quit as ninjas?! What does that mean?! Okay! Okay! We couldn't get the bells but why do we have to quit as ninjas?!"

"Because all of you are punks who don't deserve to be ninjas."

 _Ouch. That's a bit harsh. He's probably got a good reason for it._ _They certainly are an interesting group though. I wonder what'll happen next._ I focused in on Sasuke, just as he charged at Kakashi in a similar manner to how Naruto did at the beginning of this…trial thing. Of course, Kakashi easily pinned him to the ground.

"That's why you're a punk."

The rabbit— _I should probably get her name_ — shouted out to Sasuke, but it was no use. Kakashi was trying to teach them something. That much I knew.

"Are you guys underestimating ninjas? Why do you think you were divided into teams and are doing this training?"

"Huh? What does that mean?" The girl asked, completely clueless.

"He's trying to teach you something, idiots. That thing you guys did wasn't just a fun spar." They all glared at me, aside from Kakashi who looked a bit surprised for a moment.

"Well, he's correct. Basically, you guys are not understanding the answer to this test."

 _And they're confused again._

"Answer?" Naruto asked.

"Yes. The answer that helps you pass this test." Kakashi replied.

"So," The girl muttered. "when are you going to tell us?"

Kakashi sighed and I rolled my eyes. _The answer is pretty obvious._

"Ah, Damn it! What's the answer already?!"

"It's teamwork."

"Yup. Even I know that and I practically work alone." I said, catching their attention.

Crow cawed.

"I was getting to that." I growled at him. "But seriously, if your opponent is stronger than you, you have two choices. Run away, or get some back up."

Kakashi nodded. "The three of you working together may have gotten the bells."

"Hey! What do you mean by teamwork?! There are only two bells! Even if we work together and get the bells, one of us would still fail! What teamwork?! That just makes us fight each other!"

I opened my mouth, but Kakashi seemed to have expected me to speak again and gave me a look, so I shut up.

"Of course." He said. "This test is purposely set up to make you fight amongst yourselves."

"Huh?!" The two, not pinned to the ground, shouted.

"The purpose is to see whether you can forget about your own interests and successfully work together under these designed circumstances. Yet you guys—"

I yawned to myself and ignored Kakashi as he prattled on about each of the three kids' mistakes. Even when he threatened to kill Sasuke, I merely glanced in his direction, becoming more focused on the news being chatted across the forest. _Let's see…A few birds singing love songs. A couple of squirrels fighting over who got the acorn first. A paranoid rabbit believing each noise to be a wolf. Nothing interesting._ I came back into reality with a small sigh, just catching the end of the group's conversation.

"I am the rules here. Got it?"

I blinked, a bit confused as to where the conversation went to get to this point, but I didn't have to worry for long, before Kakashi was releasing me from my stump prison.

"Oh. We're going now?"

"Yes. Now hurry up."

He pulled me up and we suddenly disappeared in a swirl of leaves. When we reappeared, I struggled to keep my stomach in control. _Note to self, don't go with a ninja if he's poofing somewhere._ I soon realized that we were standing in someone's office, and that Crow didn't have the same stomach problems as I did. _Lucky._

"Is there something you need, Kakashi? Who is this?"

I looked over at the desk and caught gazes with an elder man in a white and red hat. _Hokage, I guess._

"Actually, this is The Black Ram. He was apparently hiding out near training area three and… _wanted_ to be captured." Kakashi scratched his head as the Hokage gave him a surprised look.

"Really?" The Hokage glanced at me now, curious, I suppose.

"You could say that." I said, as Crow shifted his beak through my hood, searching for snacks.

"Well then, you have my full attention." The Hokage leaned back in his chair.

I mentally shrugged _. Well, what the heck. Might as well state this bluntly. It's the only way I'll get anywhere._

"I wish to become a part of your village."

"What?!" Kakashi said, quite loudly from beside me, but I ignored him, waiting for the Hokage's response.

He simply folded his hands on the desk. "Now why do you think I would grant such a request from a renowned criminal who has been known to have stolen from the Kazekage himself?"

I frowned from underneath my mask. "I didn't know whose house it was, and I was only trying to survive. I took enough food and water to last me a few days and that was it. It's the same thing I did to all the other people I stole from."

He raised a brow, before going through his desk and pulling out a file full of papers. Finding the one he was looking for, he looked it over.

"But here it says you are known to take hostages." He glanced up once more. "Are you trying to tell me that my sources have lied?"

"No, sir. I do take hostages, but not one has been injured. Not a drop of blood has been spilled except my own, and an occasional animal or two, when I have no other option for food."

He set the paper down and watched me with hard steeled eyes. "And I am to take word from a man who won't even show me his face?"

I gazed at him, but soon discovered that he would not budge on this one thing, so instead turned to Kakashi. He removed the ropes around my body at the Hokage's nod, and I sighed.

"I will show you, on the condition that no one else is allowed to see what is under my mask without _my_ permission. I have kept my face hidden for ten years, and I'm not about to let what happened back then happen now."

The Hokage nodded. "Very well."

I nodded, then reached up to remove my skull mask and hood. The moment they were off, both Kakashi and the Hokage were shocked. My bright orange hair was revealed, having been cut short to be managed better, and the three jagged scars on my face completed my look.

"You're…a woman."

I gave Kakashi a brief look, one brow raised. "Yes. It's not my fault I am mistaken for a male. It actually helps keep me from being caught when they're all looking for a man."

"I…see."

He looked away, but the moment I faced the Hokage, I could feel his eyes back on me. I replaced my skull and hood, uncomfortable under their gazes, but waited for the Hokage to say something. Slowly, he put his head on his hands and gazed evenly at me.

"While you may not have harmed anyone, you still technically committed a crime, so I will have to refer to the council about your stay here. That, and you will most likely not be allowed to hide under your…mask and cloak any longer." He then smiled a bit. "We wouldn't want the citizen in an uproar."

I nodded. "Where will I stay until then? I highly doubt I'll be allowed to roam free as I wait for your decision."

"That's right." He leaned back and put a hand to his chin in thought. "I should be able to refer to the council today, but I may not receive an answer until tomorrow afternoon at the earliest. I suppose I will be forced to have you held in custody until the decision is made, unfortunately."

"That is fine. I do not mind. It won't be the first time I have slept someplace uncomfortable."

He nodded. "Ah, but what is your name? We can't just continue to call you 'The Black Ram'." He chuckled.

I frowned. "I do not remember my name."

"Don't remember?" He questioned.

"No. I woke up in the Land of Wind when I was seventeen with no memories of what happened before that."

"Hm. That is a predicament. Perhaps we could give you a name?"

"That is fine."

He hummed in thought for a moment, before coming up with something. "How about Nao?"

I shook my head, not liking that one, when Kakashi came up with one. "What about Makoto? They have similar meanings."

I thought about it and nodded. "Mako, for short. And my last name?"

"Kuroyama. Does that work?"

"Makoto Kuroyama. Sounds good. I'll try to remember it." I said and the two of them gave a short chuckle.

"Well then. Now that that's done, Kakashi? Could you escort Makoto to the cells for now? That way you can get back to your students. I'm assuming you passed them?"

He nodded. "Yes, sir. Took them a moment, but they figured it out. Shall we?" He asked me and I nodded, walking with him towards the door as the Hokage called out one last time.

"Makoto."

I glanced at him, waiting.

"Try not to scare my villagers when you get out." He said with a smile and I nearly smiled back.

"I'll try not to."


	2. Chapter 2

The Hokage was right when he said that the earliest answer would be given the next afternoon. I actually wasn't let out of the cell until a week after. Food was pushed into the cell and there were a few times where I was interrogated, but it was after a week that I was finally brought before the council. They reacted as I expected when I removed my skull mask, immediately speaking to each other in harsh whispers. They thought as every other being who saw my face thought. They believed me to be a demon.

After that, they came to the decision that I could join their village, but I would be watched over for another month until I could even be considered trust worthy. As annoying as it was, I didn't mind. I was allowed out of the cell after an interrogation; a requirement to my release. They had to be sure that I wasn't going to go on a rampage the moment I was released. What was weird though, was that they couldn't uncover any of my forgotten memories and claimed that they had been locked away or even possibly destroyed by someone.

Now, I didn't know who this 'someone' was, but I knew that they might have been the reason behind the so called _monster_ that the interrogators found while they were looking in my head. They explained to me as well as the Hokage, that they couldn't particularly see the beast, but they saw it's eyes and the cage it was held in. The Hokage questioned if it was like some sort of fox that I hadn't heard about, and they said that it wasn't. I believe they said it seemed tamer or less menacing or something.

I personally, had no clue what they were talking about. I never knew that there was a monster in my head or that someone had taken my memories. I hardly knew anything about myself except what I became in the last ten years. Needless to say though, I was considered a threat until the end of the month.

After that, I was finally allowed out of the interrogation building and into the first sunlight I had seen for a week. Crow was the first to greet me and I was regrettably informed that I needed to remove my mask, by a man who was assigned to watch over me for the month. I was somewhat pleased though, when the Hokage came over and handed me a key. I was allowed to have my own place and wouldn't have to pay rent or anything until next month when I would be allowed to take missions.

The council had apparently considered me a valuable tool and briefly mentioned that it would be stupid to not allow me to work missions. When I tried to explain to them that my skills as far as jutsu wasn't very good, they simply told the Hokage to set me up to get trained for the first month and then I was to be sent with the genin teams on their missions until I was capable to do solo missions. And trained I was.

My skills were tested first, to see who the Hokage would view compatible as my teacher for the month and I was stuck with an insane woman named Anko. She was very hot headed and brutal, when it came to training me. I was forced to wear weights in order to increase my speed and then was told to run around the entire village while carrying her. Everyday became exhausting, but I never once complained and there was more than one occasion that she hit me upside the head for being so expressionless. I liked her though. She never commented on my hair or eye color by calling me a monster or demon or anything, and she got along well with Crow.

I'd say the jutsu work was probably the hardest for me though. I was very good at genjutsu, which she said wasn't surprising seeing how I was stealthy to begin with and I had great chakra control. It was the ninjutsu I had a problem with. I seemed to be able to use fire and lightning, but both elements were a bit wild for me to handle and often went out of control.

I had set the training ground on fire more than once, and had to keep my hands wrapped almost constantly after the burns I received trying to do jutsu and just _controlling_ the stupid elements. Anko helped a bit with that and showed me how to concentrate and focus to be able to keep the flame under control. I didn't really work on the lightning element though. Anko didn't have much experience in that area, but she was surprised to find me practicing well into the night on my fire techniques and even a bit of dabbling in the lightning as well.

The taijutsu was easy though. Anko was surprised with the style I had basically created from scratch, but it was effective against the usual taijutsu so she didn't complain. She actually loved to have spars with me since I didn't hold back against her like most people probably would. There was one thing though, that the two of us discovered. The monster inside me, was a lot more violent than we thought.

It wasn't so much a demon, per say, as it was just that. A monster. A beast, even. I didn't even remember what happened that night. Anko was the only one who witnessed it. Well, her and the poor deer that happened to be nearby. When I tried to get her to explain what happened, she simply told me that I lost control. She told me not to dwell on it and that any damages that had been done were already taken care of, but I couldn't help but wonder what exactly happened. Our training area only told a bit of the story, what with it being near destroyed and completely void of animals. Even Crow was hesitant towards me for a little while.

I was just lucky that the Hokage didn't make a big deal out of it. He was simply curious and gave me orders to try and control it a bit better. He also briefly mentioned a Jiraiya and something about possibly sealing it, but I was sent away after that and hadn't heard anything since then. The month was just about over though, and once the end of the month came, I was no longer being watched and had been summoned to the mission's office.

When I got there though, I was told to wait in another room with a man who was drinking greedily from a bottle, most likely filled with sake. He gave me a look as I walked in.

"Who are you?"

I blinked at him. "Mako Kuroyama."

"Oh. I'm Tazuna…You're one of those ninjas, aren't you? They push the life right out of ya. Are all you ninja types that emotionless?"

"No." I replied, removing the bandana on my head as it had become a bit hot.

His eyes went wide though, and I realized my mistake. I had been around Anko so long that I had forgotten about how others react to my hair and eyes. I quickly put it back on, apologizing.

"Sorry. I forgot that I am frightening to people."

He shook his head, as if coming out of a daze, and took a large sip of his sake.

"Yeah, well…Sorry for actin' like that. It's not everyday I see that kind of appearance." He looked down at his bottle and sighed, digging through his bag and handing another one to me as I sat across from him. "Here. Might as well have some. As apologies for, you know.."

I nodded and took a finished off the bottle rather quickly. He was surprised at that, but I had long since learned to hold my liquor well, what with being Anko's student. He laughed as I handed it back to him and wiped my chin.

"Ahaha! I like you! Demon or not. You certainly can hold your alcohol."

"Yes. My…teacher liked drinking, so I had to get used to it."

He nodded and returned to drinking his bottle silently, when the Hokage shouted from the next room over.

"Hey, will you two come in here?"

I glanced at the man across from me and he got up. "Well, looks like he wants us both. You comin'?"

I nodded and got up as well, heading out into the room with him. I was surprised to see Kakashi, Naruto, Sasuke, and…Saku…Saku…Sakura! Yeah, I was surprised to see them there, but they hadn't noticed me yet since I was standing behind Tazuna as he spoke.

"What's this? They're all a bunch of brats." He said, taking another swig of his sake. "Especially the shortest one with the stupid looking grin on his face. Are you really a ninja?"

Naruto laughed. "Haha. Who's the shortest one with the stupid face?"

Unfortunately, he didn't realize it was _him_ Tazuna was talking about, until a short while later.

"I'll kill you!" He shouted, going to attack the man, but Kakashi held him back.

"What's the point in killing the person we're supposed to attack? Idiot."

Tazuna gave them all a bored look. "I am the expert bridge builder Tazuna. I expect you to provide me protection until I get back to my country and complete the bridge."

Naruto reluctantly gave up and folded his arms with a pout, when the Hokage pointed me out to everyone.

"Ah yes, and Mako will be joining you four on this, Kakashi. I hope that's not a problem?"

I stepped out from behind Tazuna and the three kids looked at me in confusion, while Kakashi gave me a look before glancing back at the Hokage.

"Are you sure?"

The Hokage nodded. "The council has also agreed on this. She is free to take on missions with the genin until her skills are up to par for solo missions."

Kakashi sighed, but nodded and we all left the building. The moment we got outside though, two of the kids began asking questions; Sasuke just listening intently.

"So who are you?"

"Why do you have those scars on your face? Did you get in an awesome ninja battle?! And what's with the bandana? Are you bald or something?"

I silently asked Kakashi for help, but he just smiled. _That jerk. Fine. I'll just answer their questions bluntly. As long as I don't peak their interest, they'll probably leave me alone._

"I'm Mako Kuroyama. I was attacked by a drunk who cut me with the broken end of his sake bottle. It was not a ninja battle. The bandana is to cover my hair, and no. I'm not bald."

I looked down at them with a bored expression and Naruto frowned.

"Che, another Sasuke-teme."

"You three have met before." Kakashi piped up. "Don't you remember?"

The three gave him a confused look and then turned to me.

"We know you?"

"Yeah. I don't remember you."

I sighed, before staring at the sky and whistling. Not seconds later, Crow flew down and attacked Naruto's hair before landing on my shoulder with a caw.

"Ah! You're that skull guy!" Naruto shouted, pointing a finger at me as I nodded. "You're stupid bird kept attacking me! What's it's problem?!"

I looked at Crow who cawed back, and I turned back to Naruto. "He said he just doesn't like you. Something about your hair looking like a stupid yellow duck from above. He doesn't like ducks."

Naruto shouted and went to attack Crow, but I easily held him back with my hand as I gave Sasuke a look.

"He doesn't really like you either. You're hair also looks like a duck's butt."

I saw a tick mark appear on both Sasuke and Sakura's heads, but by then Kakashi had realized the situation and quickly went to dissolve it.

"Mah, mah. Let's all get along now. We'll be leaving as soon as everyone has everything they need. So pack up your equipment and meet over at the gates in an hour."

They all left, rather reluctantly, and I nodded once to Kakashi before I too walked away to go get my things from my apartment. _Let's see here. Kunai, shuriken, wire, food, sleeping roll, flint, water, clothes…what am I missing?_ I frowned as I went over my mental checklist, when someone suddenly crashed through my window. Alert, I fought with the person, already knowing who it was, but still ended up pinned on the ground.

"You haven't been practicing, mutt."

"I'm not a mutt." I groaned out, glaring slightly as I ignored the cold sting of metal on my neck. "And I _have_ been practicing."

I twisted and managed to get a hand free, which I used to knock her kunai in the air. I then, flipped her to the ground and snatched the kunai as it fell back down; holding it to her neck. Anko, being who she was, just smirked and head butt me, slamming her elbow into my stomach as she took the kunai back and held it to my throat as I leaned against the wall.

"Not enough to beat me just yet, mutt."

I sighed, accepting defeat, and she stood back up while I continued to sit on the floor.

"So what did you want? You obviously needed something since you're here."

She glared with a frown. "What? I can't see my own student off on her first mission?"

I simply blinked at her. "It's normally more than that. You're not fooling me, sensei."

Her frown changed to a smile and she put her kunai away, before pulling something else out of her pack. Smiling brightly, she handed me a sake bottle and I sweat dropped.

"Brought you a present~"

"That's not a present. That's an excuse for you to drink."

She just laughed and pulled out a couple of cups, pouring some sake in both before handing one to me.

"How'd you know?"

I shook my head, but took the drink. I knew what happened when I didn't accept a drink from Anko, and I'd rather not repeat the experience. We drank for the next forty-five minutes, but didn't finish off the sake before I had to go. Standing up, I gathered my things, ignoring the slight blurring of my vision as I got up.

"I need to go, Anko. I'm going to be late."

"Well then take this with you! It's your going away present!"

She shoved the half empty bottle in my hands and I reluctantly took it before heading out the door and towards the gates. I debated back and forth on whether or not I should finish off the drink before I get there, but I finally managed to convince myself to save it and I corked it; shoving it into my pack. When I finally reached the gates, everyone was already there and Naruto was the first to yell at me.

"Hey! You're late!"

I looked up at the sky and looked back at him. "No, I'm not. I'm right on time."

Kakashi nodded. "She's right, Naruto. She's on time."

Naruto opened and closed his mouth like a fish, but finally stopped and stomped his foot.

"Fine! Can we go now?"

Kakashi laughed. "Sure, sure. Lead the way."

"All right! Let's go!"

Naruto walked out as the rest of us followed him, Crow flying off ahead in case he found something before we did.

"Hey, what are you so excited for?" Tazuna asked Naruto.

"Cause I've never left the village before!" He said, looking around enthusiastically.

Tazuna looked a bit worried. "Hey am I even safe with this brat?"

Kakashi gave him a smile. "Well, I am a jounin, so you don't have to worry."

Tazuna then looked at me. "And you? You the same as him?" He asked, gesturing to Kakashi.

I shook my head. "No. I am merely…a tool."

He raised a brow at my explanation, but neither of them asked anything more about it and it wasn't long before Naruto returned and began shouting once more.

"Hey, old man! Don't mess with ninjas! I'm incredible! One day I will take on the super elite ninja title Hokage! My name's Naruto Uzumaki! Remember it!"

"Hokage's the number one ninja in the village, right? I doubt someone like you could become it." Tazuna said, taking another chug from his bottle.

"Shut up! I am prepared to do anything to become the Hokage! Once I become the Hokage, you will acknowledge me!"

"No I won't, you brat. Even if you did become the Hokage."

"I'll kill you!" Naruto shouted and charged at the man, only to get grabbed once more by Kakashi.

"I said stop it, moron."

I sighed, but suddenly froze for a split second when Crow cawed. _Someone is following us._ I continued walking and began making bird calls to gather more information. _Two of them. Males. Crow calls them…water rats. Odd._

"Um, what are you doing, Mako?"

I looked down to my left and saw Sakura standing there, giving me an odd look.

"Making bird calls." I replied bluntly. I couldn't let her know I was getting information from Crow, in case that the two rats were listening to our conversation.

"Oh…Can they, um, understand you?"

"Maybe."

She nodded and looked down at her feet. I wasn't used to people and was unsure what to do at this point, so I just stayed quiet. Then, I thought of something.

"Do you…want to learn one?"

She looked up with bright eyes. "You can teach me?"

I nodded. "It's not hard. Just put your hands like this, put your thumbs together and blow."

I showed her, and in the distance, another bird responded back. The call I was showing her was just a simple call return, showing the user where the other birds of that type were at in the area. Her first attempt was a failure, so I helped her fix her hands and she tried again. This time, I nearly laughed, for she had managed to insult herself and the birds were laughing.

"I did it!"

I shook my head, a small smile peaking through my stoic façade. "No. They are laughing because you managed to insult yourself."

"Wha— but that's—Hmph."

She crossed her arms and pouted, but she couldn't give up now and positioned her hands once more. This time, she got it right and the birds properly responded back.

"Did I do it right that time?"

I nodded. "Yeah. You did, but they're still laughing about your earlier mistake."

"Gah!" She tossed her hands up in the air and went to go bug Kakashi about something.

I didn't mind. I was uncomfortable with people anyway. My friends were the birds and the animals—minus the bears—and I felt that looking for friends here, might turn out to be a bad thing.

I looked at Sasuke curiously. _He's similar to me. Emotionless, for the most part, doesn't wish for friends…but I wonder what his reason is? Or what my reason is._ As I went to contemplate that, I noticed a puddle on the ground and gave it a look. Crow informed me that that was where the two rats were hiding and I walked on with the others. Catching up with Kakashi, I stood beside him and spoke softly.

"There's two in the puddle."

"I know."

"What do we do?"

I was only asking since he was in charge of this mission, something Anko had made clear to me from day one: always do what the leader says, unless you deem the leader corrupt. Twisted into my own words of course. Hers involved a bit more shouting and cursing.

"Let's see how they do, shall we?"

I frowned slightly. "You're saying use substitution? I haven't learned that yet."

He sighed. "Then disappear. That's what you do best, is it not?"

I gave a brief nod and did as he said, disappeared, leaving a clone in my place. It was just in time too. The two rats—I mean, ninja—decided to attack and launched their chains out of the puddle, trapping Kakashi and my clone in the chains, before pulling tight and seemingly killing us both; much to the surprise of the kids and Tazuna.

I watched from my perch, with Crow on my shoulder and Kakashi crouched next to me, as the kids were attacked by the two ninja. Naruto would've surely been caught, should Sasuke had not pinned the man's chains to a tree. He then jumped on their mechanical arms and kicked them both hard in the face. They were smart to cut themselves off from the chains that pinned them. Even more so, for splitting up; one attacking Tazuna, while the other went after Naruto. Kakashi tapped me on the shoulder and I took the hint, jumping down in-between Naruto and the one ninja, while Kakashi grabbed the other. There was a slight sting from one of the man's claws nicking my lower arm, but I was still easily able to dispatch him without problem.

The kids were all pretty surprised to see the two of us, but Kakashi wasn't nearly as cheerful. After all, us being attacked by ninja of this caliber only went to prove that Tazuna was hiding information about the kinds of people we were dealing with. Distracting myself, I took the other man from Kakashi and tied them to a nearby tree while he spoke to the kids and Tazuna.

"Naruto, I'm sorry Mako and I didn't save you earlier. We didn't think you'd freeze like that. Anyway, nice job, Sasuke. Sakura too."

I felt a bit bad for the kid. I knew first hand what it was like to freeze like that, but he was luckier since he had someone to save him. Me, on the other hand, got some pretty bad injuries before I finally snapped out of it. Although, Sasuke's taunt probably didn't help things. _Then again, it might encourage Naruto to do better. Eh, who knows. People aren't my thing._

"Naruto. Quit moving around. Their claws are soaked in poison. We have to remove it quickly. The more you move, the faster it will spread." Kakashi then looked at Tazuna, seriously. "Tazuna, I need to talk to you. Mako?"

I gave a thumbs up, indicating that they were secured and headed over towards Naruto to clean up his wound. _I should take care of mine too, but I've dealt with poisons before so Naruto comes first._

"These look like Hidden Mist chunin. These ninja are known to continue fighting no matter what."

"How did you read our movements?" One of the men grumbled.

Kakashi smiled. "On a sunny day like this when it hasn't rained in days, there's not going to be a puddle. Although Mako's skills came in handy too. She probably knew way before I did, that we were being followed."

Crow landed on my shoulder and I gave him a scratch on the head.

"If you knew that, why did you let the brats fight?" Tazuna asked.

"If I had wanted to, I could've killed these two instantly, but there was something I needed to find out. Who these two were after."

"What do you mean?"

I took a chance to butt in, having knelt down to inspect Naruto's scratch. "They were either after us or you. The details of the mission say nothing about ninja attacks. We're only suppose to protect you from minor thieves."

Kakashi nodded. "Mako's right. This has now become at least a B-rank mission. This was supposed to be a simple protection until you completed the bridge. I'm sure you had a reason, but it causes problems when you lie about a mission. We are now operating outside of our duties."

"We aren't ready for this mission." Sakura piped up. "Let's quit! We will need medicine for Naruto's wound. We should go back to the village and take him to a doctor."

I opened my mouth to explain that it was much simpler than that, but Kakashi gave me a look, silencing me.

"Hm." He hummed. "This might be too much. I guess we should return to the village to treat Naruto."

I could feel Naruto shaking and glanced up to see just how ticked off he was. _So this is why Kakashi didn't let me say anything. He wanted to make Naruto mad so that he would try harder and not chicken out and be a possible liability later on._ Suddenly, Naruto yanked his hand out of mine and stabbed it with a kunai, surprising everyone. There were a few mumbles here and there, but Naruto turned around with a determined look.

"I'll protect the old man. We're continuing the mission!"

There was a pause and I sighed, pulling more bandages out of my pack.

"Naruto, it's good that you are releasing the poison but…" I started out, but Kakashi finished for me with a smile.

"You'll die from lack of blood."

Of course, he began freaking out and I silently grabbed his hand to bandage it. It was a bit unexpected though to find the wound already healing. I blinked a few times and Naruto took my silence to mean something else.

"Um, hey…Am I going to be…"

I glanced up. "You'll be fine."

I felt a hand on my shoulder as I finished wrapping the bandage and listened to Kakashi whisper in my ear.

"Don't say a word about his wound healing."

I gave a brief nod, when Tazuna called out to Kakashi.

"I have to talk to you."

I listened in as we walked, not really caring about what they were talking about, but mostly just paying attention to possible information of what we would be dealing with. I personally could care less about the tycoon who was taking money from this guy's village, but that was just my personality. I had a bit of empathy, but not much. I got along just fine for ten years with nothing but the clothes on my back. _But I must also consider his other circumstances._

I sighed quietly, my breath moving the mist in front of me into a swirling pattern. We were currently on a boat after all. A friend of Tazuna's helping us across the water under the bridge in secret, since our enemy was such a big one. Naruto though, nearly gave away our position. _It doesn't matter much though. It'll be difficult to use any of my fire jutsu in this wet atmosphere. Lightning is my best bet, but I haven't worked that much with it. Looks like I'm stuck with taijutsu and genjutsu; which I don't think will help much either._

As we docked and said goodbye to the boat driver, I sent Crow up into the mist to see what he could find and how far his vision was. I heard his reply and gave a slight frown as he returned to my shoulder with apologies. _He can't see very far in the mist, so he won't be of much help. For now, I best check with the other animals in the area. Maybe, with a group large enough, I'll be able to get a hint of what's out there. Mist is definitely a good cover._ I was about to let out a whistle, when Naruto suddenly launched a kunai into the bushes.

"There!" Nothing happened and I scowled. "Heh, just a rat. He replied coolly.

"Stop trying to act cool! There was nothing there!" Sakura shouted.

"Hey." Kakashi muttered. "Please stop using Shuriken. It's seriously dangerous."

"Hey midget! Stop acting like a moron!" Tazuna also shouted.

I shook my head and let out the whistle. It was different from the bird calls that I normally use, but it worked all the same. A group of squirrels were nearby, but something or someone had them frightened and they were running off with only bits of information to give me. _Not good. From their description, this guy is stronger than the last two._

I felt my head spin for a moment and things suddenly became a bit more serious, in my case. The poison from our previous encounter was finally kicking in. I was vulnerable. Just then, I got a reply from a rabbit who was more paranoid than any other that I've met. Before I could figure out what was wrong though, Naruto launched another kunai.

"There!"

"I said stop!" Sakura yelled once more, hitting Naruto on the head.

"Ow! I saw something! I swear!"

Kakashi took a step forward, but I quickly passed him when I heard the pathetic plea of help. Pushing the bushes aside, I sighed to myself upon discovering the rabbit I heard earlier, with a kunai between its ears.

"Oh." Sakura said from behind me. "Naruto! What have you done?!"

Naruto went to take the rabbit, but one look at him had the poor thing jumping into my arms, shaking.

"I didn't mean it! I'm so sorry rabbit!" Naruto apologized, which I basically repeated to the rabbit, but with added insults to the moron and a quest for information.

Immediately, my eyes widened when I discovered why this rabbit in particular was so frightened. _It was raised indoors! It has no clue about the wild! And from what it told me, we are in some deep trouble._ I felt an intense killing intent wash over me, obviously unfelt by the others, and quickly shouted out to them.

"Everyone, get down!"

The whole group ducked, Sakura tackling Naruto when he was a bit slow, and myself jumping up into the trees and leaving a clone behind for now. I needed to observe my enemy first. If anyone was in a tight spot though, I would help out. I whistled for Crow to keep an eye on Naruto, since he seems to be the biggest trouble maker, and quietly managed to make a second clone to drop the rabbit off into the bushes safely, before hiding and waiting for further orders.

"Well, well. If it isn't the Hidden Mist's missing-nin, Momochi Zabuza."

Naruto looked ready to charge, but my clone held him back. "Don't. He's on a completely different level."

 _I remember this guy. He was in my bingo book._

"Mako's right. Everyone get back." Kakashi said. "It will be a bit difficult unless I do this."

I was a bit confused as he lifted his forehead protector, and even managed to ignore our enemy for a moment when I saw the red eye Kakashi had had hidden underneath the cloth. _That's…a sharingan._

"Surround and protect Tazuna. Do not enter the fight. That's the teamwork here. You too, Mako."

My clone nodded as Zabuza and Kakashi spoke, mocking each other, really. Naruto was also being lectured about what the sharingan is. Zabuza kept inputting here and there. Finally, they finished talking, Zabuza ending the discussion.

"Enough talking. I have to kill that old man."

The three kids and I surrounded Tazuna with kunai at the ready, and Zabuza turned his attention to Kakashi once more.

"But, Kakashi, it seems I have to beat you first."

Zabuza kicked the tree, dislodging his sword, and disappeared before reappearing over on the lake in an unrecognizable pose. I could feel him pumping out chakra, but then, he suddenly disappeared. I frowned to myself, rubbing my eyes to try and clear my vision. _Damn it. The poison's getting worse._ Silently, I dug through my pack and grabbed some anti-venom salve that I had made for instances like this. I spread some on my wound and hoped that that would keep some of the poison's effects down for the moment. I could take better care of it later. Now was not the time.

"He'll come after me first." Kakashi said. "Momochi Zabuza. As a member of the Hidden Mist, he was known as an expert in silent killing. You don't even notice until you're already dead. It's not like I can use the sharingan perfectly. You guys be careful."

It wasn't that he was trying to frighten us, if anything, Kakashi was trying to inform us of just how strong this enemy was.

"And Mako." My clone and I gave him our utmost attention. "Prove to me I can trust you, and take care of those kids."

My clone nodded and pulled out a second kunai to hold in it's opposite hand; a strip of wire connecting the two. That wire was special though. It was so thin one could barely see it even without the mist, so surprise would be on my side, but only for a moment.

"8 choices." A voice called out from the mist and I could feel everyone tense up, even from my perch.

I couldn't see everyone very well, but I knew where they were and focused solely on what my clone was seeing and hearing. Even Anko was surprised how well I worked with my clones and, even though I could only create a few Kage Bushin at a time, if I focused hard enough, it was like I was there.

"Liver, lungs, spine, clavicle vein, neck vein, brain, kidneys, heart…Which one should I go after?"

I felt the killing intent increase as everyone became more and more frightened, but I knew that was what he wanted. Kakashi seemed to realize it as well, for he let out his own killing intent. My clone glanced at the kids to see how they were faring, and they weren't faring well. I had dealt with this kind of thing before. As I said, the animals made it clear who was in charge and their killing intent was just as bad as this, if not worse at times.

"Sasuke." Kakashi called out. "Don't worry. I'll protect you guys even if it kills me. I don't let my comrades die."

He smiled back at us and that seemed to calm him and the others down a bit, so my clone added in my own bit.

"Me too. I don't know you well, but I won't let kits get hurt."

They were a bit confused at the word 'kits' I'm sure, but that's what they were to me. Just young animals with no experience of what it's like in the wild. _And I_ am _going to protect them._ Suddenly, my clone and I felt the killing intent disappear and I knew exactly what was going to happen. He was going to attack, and now. Already knowing who his target was, my clone quickly grabbed Tazuna and threw him back as Zabuza appeared in the middle of our formation. My clone also shoved Naruto and Sakura out of the way, since they were closest, and Kakashi got Sasuke, simultaneously stabbing Zabuza in the stomach. Something was wrong though, and Crow was the first to catch on, telling me it was a fake from the air. My clone saw the next Zabuza behind Kakashi and jumped between them, catching Zabuza's sword as it sliced between my clone's ribs.

"Gya!" Sakura shouted, but my clone smirked before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

"A clone!"

Zabuza realized this and went after Kakashi, but the thing he hit was also a clone; made out of water just as his was. I sent my reserve clone out just as Kakashi got behind Zabuza once more, a kunai pressed to the man's neck.

"Don't move. It's over."

"Wow!" Naruto cheered, while Sakura giggled.

It was when Zabuza began to chuckle quietly that I knew it wasn't quite over yet. _He's not an animal that would give in so easily. Especially when the squirrels described him as a bear. Not many humans get that name and I know just how tough fighting a bear could be._

"Hehehe…It's over? There's no way you can defeat me with your monkey-like imitations. But that was impressive of you and your friend there. At that time, your friend there was already a clone and you had already copied my water clone. You then had both your clones say those words to attract my attention while the real you hid in the mist and watched me. Nice plan…but…" The first Zabuza then turned into water. "I'm not that easy."

A third Zabuza was behind Kakashi and once my clone and I had realized it, my clone was hurrying over to try and help. Zabuza swung his sword to slice Kakashi in half, but Kakashi ducked low, only for Zabuza to stab his sword into the ground and use it as a way to come back around and kick Kakashi backwards. Zabuza went to attack him as he was sent flying towards the lake, but my clone interfered then by jumping between the two men and kicking up from the ground into Zabuza's chest.

Zabuza was pushed back, but he easily recovered and charged at my clone once more. My clone ducked and dodged, but was eventually grabbed by Zabuza and thrown into the lake not long after Kakashi surfaced. Crow, going along with what I had said, flew over the lake frantically, as if it was really me in there. When my clone surfaced though, it relayed a message to me that was concerning. _The water is thick? Why would the water be thick? Unless—_ My thoughts were cut off when suddenly Kakashi and my clone were trapped inside of a water prison.

"You may have been trying to escape the water," Zabuza said. "but that was a big mistake. Hehehe, I now have you and your pesky friend there in my inescapable special prison. It makes thing tougher if you two can move, you know? Now, Kakashi, we can finish things later. First, I'll take care of them."

Zabuza created another water clone, but I didn't give my position away just yet. Kakashi may hate me for it later, but if I can gather more information to make it easier to defeat him, then it's for the best.

"Hehe, wearing forehead protectors and acting like real ninjas…but you know what? A real ninja is someone who has survived numerous brushes with death. Basically, once you're good enough to be listed in my handbook, then you can start calling yourself a ninja. You guys should not be referred to as ninjas."

The Zabuza clone disappeared, but I knew who it was going after once more. _He's just another animal now, playing with his food before he kills it. He'll pick out the seemingly weakest link first and attack. The one who is the most scared…Naruto._ Immediately, I jumped from my perch and appeared directly in front of Naruto as Zabuza had reappeared and swung a kick at him. Catching his foot from my crouched position, not inches from my face, I gazed up at the man boredly.

"So what's it take to get into your book, Zabuza?"

"Mako!" The kids shouted as Zabuza looked shocked to see me there.

"What?!" He turned towards the water prison to see my clone poof into smoke and Kakashi give a slight smirk under his mask.

"Good job, Mako."

Ignoring him, I twisted the clone's leg, before ducking underneath it and throwing the clone over my shoulder and into the ground hard. As the clone splashed into water, I stood up and gazed at the real Zabuza who was struggling not to smile, it seemed.

"You…You are _interesting_. I recognize that look in your eyes. You despise them, don't you? You _hate_ people."

"Yes." I replied bluntly. "I despise the human species."

"What? B-But Mako…" Sakura stuttered, but I cut her off.

"They have done many things to me. However, I cannot hate these kids for what other people have done. So, I will protect them."

Zabuza laughed. "Hahaha! A woman who hates humanity, but is willing to sacrifice her life to protect a couple of brats?! What the hell are you?!"

"I…am an animal."

I suddenly crouched low to the ground in a position that was familiar to me, versus using one of the taijutsu poses. With a burst of chakra, I launched myself at Zabuza, quick enough to leave the kids open mouthed. My running around was just a distraction though. He was surprised at my speed it seemed, but I didn't give him long to think about it before I threw a kunai at him, which he dodged. My slight smirk though, helped him spot what was wrong when he saw the other kunai following that one. He dodged that one as well, with a smirk of his own.

"You missed."

"No I didn't."

Suddenly, his eyes widened and he grunted as a thin wire cut into his neck. He barely managed to get a hand under the wire before it decapitated him, but he was furious.

"You! There was a wire attached to those kunai!"

I nodded. "Yes, there was. If there's one thing I learned from you while you were giving your speeches and fighting Kakashi, it was that you severely underestimate your opponents."

He growled, tearing the wire from around his neck and summoning three more water clones. I sighed, almost bored at his repetition as I dodged a swing from one of the swords. Letting my killing intent out a tad, I rapidly ducked and dodged before pulling out my secret weapon from my pack as I avoided hit after hit from the clones. Finally, I was ready and I stood up, stabbing my hand into one of the water clones and grabbing the other by the throat as he came close to cut me down.

Tossing the first clone aside, I revealed my weapon, a set of tekagi-shuko (cat claws). Using the weapon, I plunged them into the clone I was holding by the throat before spinning and kicking the last clone in the chin with excruciating force. Needless to say, if the clone was a live person, their jaw would have surely been shattered. The three clones turned into water and I turned to Zabuza, not even the slightest bit amused.

"It seems _you_ are the on who needs to try and make it into _my_ handbook, Zabuza."

He smirked and immediately I knew something was off.

"Ahaha! Not quite!"

I felt a killing intent from behind me, but wasn't able to dodge the attack completely. Zabuza had made a fourth clone which had cut into my side deeply. Mentally cursing at being so focused on my battle instead of my surroundings, I skidded to the side, clutching at the deep gash. Unfortunately, the clone immediately went after Naruto and I had no chance to get up before Naruto was kicked to the ground; his forehead protector flying off his forehead.

"Naruto! Mako!" Sakura shouted, followed by Kakashi.

"You guys take Tazuna and run away! You have no chance of beating him! As long as he's keeping me trapped in this prison, he can't move! The water clone cannot go very far from his real body! Just run away! Mako! Take them away form here! That's an order!"

I flinched at those words. _"That's an order!" Anko told me to always follow the leader, but this time…Sorry, Anko, but I'm breaking the rules._

"No." I said, getting up. "As you said before, Kakashi, I will not let a comrade die."

"Mako! Stop being stupid! Take them away from here! You're injured too!"

I looked down at my freely bleeding wound, reaching into my pack at the same time.

"This," I said, pulling out the bottle of sake Anko had brought, uncorking it with my mouth. "This is nothing."

With that, I poured a good amount of the alcohol on the wound and hardly flinched. Zabuza smirked while I spotted Naruto starting to get up. Looking back at Zabuza's clone, I realized what Naruto was going to do and decided not to interfere. _In order to get used to the wild, every kit needs a chance to taste the harshness of reality._

"Uwah!" Naruto ran at Zabuza and Sakura shouted for him to stop.

"Naruto! What are you thinking?!"

"Mako! Stop him!" Kakashi shouted, but I didn't move and just watched as Naruto was kicked back across the clearing.

"What are you doing jumping in all by yourself?! We genin have no chance against him!"

Sakura stopped yelling at him though, when she saw that he had charged back in to get his forehead protector.

"Hey…You eyebrow less freak."

I couldn't help but look at Zabuza and notice that he did, indeed, have no eyebrows.

"Put this in your handbook. The man who will one day become Hokage, Konoha ninja, Naruto Uzumaki!" He then turned to Sasuke. "Sasuke! Lend me your ear!"

Sasuke seemed reluctant at first, but when Naruto mentioned a plan, he was willing to listen. Turning towards the clone, knowing Zabuza wasn't going to wait, I took the opportunity to do what I could and planned on at least delaying him long enough for Naruto and Sasuke to figure out the plan.

"A lot of arrogance, but do you stand a chance?" Zabuza questioned, but I stood between him and the group.

"You're underestimating them again." I said, chugging down the last of the sake from the bottle before tucking it in my cloak. "You'll find, Zabuza, that even the smallest of creatures can be frightening when in a pack."

"What are you doing?!" Kakashi shouted from his prison. "Run away! This battle was over the moment I got caught! Our duty is to protect Tazuna! Did you forget that?!"

Naruto turned to Tazuna, but I didn't take my eyes off of Zabuza's clone.

"Old man?"

"Well, I planted this seed myself. I'm not going to now say that I desire to live so much that I'd stop you. I'm sorry guys, fight as much as you want."

He smirked and I half-shouted back. "You owe me sake, Tazuna, when we win."

He laughed. "Ahaha! Alright!"

With that, I gave a smirk and clasped my hands together to form hand seals. _I haven't work with this very well, but let's see just how much damage it can do._

"Raijuu Hashiri no jutsu." (lightning beast running)

Zabuza and Kakashi's eyes widened as a wolf made out of lightning ran in the direction of the clone. The clone tried to slice it with his sword, but the sword passed right through and the lightning ended up running up the blade and dissolving the clone.

Unfortunately, this little attack took a lot out of me due to my injury combined with the poison and the clones I had created earlier. My breathing was heavier and my form was hunched over slightly, as sweat slid down the side of my face. Yet, I could feel adrenaline rush through me. I _wanted_ to fight. It was almost a drug at this point. After being kept stationary for so long in that cell and then fighting Anko day after day, I itched for the thrill of a fight and would probably even fight a bear at this point.

Zabuza, not through yet, summoned up one more water clone, but I could tell he was beginning to feel the effect of summoning so many clones. Luckily, Naruto and Sasuke were ready. Zabuza laughed though, obviously amused at our situation.

"You guys will never grow up."

"What?!" Naruto shouted.

"Going to keep playing ninja, eh? When I was about your age, these hands were already dyed red with blood."

The kids gulped, but I stayed stationary, trying to blink away the black spots in my vision as my limbs began to shake from excitement.

"Devil Zabuza." Kakashi said.

"Ah, so you've heard of me."

"Long ago, in the Hidden Mist village, there was a final obstacle in becoming a ninja."

"Hm. You even know about the graduation exam."

"The exam?" Naruto questioned and Zabuza chuckled. "What's this exam thing?"

"Fights to the death between the students."

The kids and Tazuna were all shocked, but I had lock away most of my emotions years ago in order to just survive. I did, however, feel a pang of emotion as he went on.

"Friends who have trained and eaten at the same table are pitted against each other and go at it until one of them loses their life. There are friends who had helped each other and shared dreams."

"Terrible…" Sakura murmured.

"Ten years ago," Kakashi went on. "The Hidden Mist graduation exam was forced to change. This change came after the previous year when a devil appeared."

"Change?" Sakura questioned this time. "What change? What did this devil do?"

"Without pause or hesitation, a young boy who wasn't even a ninja had killed over a hundred of the students."

Without warning or even giving me a chance to react, Zabuza's clone was in front of me and slammed his fist into my stomach before slamming me to the ground and kicking my wound.

"Mako!"

I coughed up blood, but kept my narrowed gaze on Zabuza's clone. I wasn't going to show any weakness now. I grabbed his leg, but my arms were shaking from the strain of fighting off the poison from before.

"Haha. You have such great eyes. The eyes of a cold-blooded killer, but the weak body of a fool. Die."

He picked up his foot to kick me again, but just then, Naruto created a horde of clones. Zabuza didn't even seem that surprised.

"Ah, shadow clones, and a large amount too."

"Here I come!" The clones shouted and I managed to jump back out of the way as they all jumped to attack Zabuza.

As I skidded across the ground, I tried to stay focused on what was going on and watched as Naruto tossed a huge shuriken over to Sasuke. Opening the shuriken, Sasuke held it menacingly in front of his face.

"Evil Wind Shuriken: Shadow Windmill!"

Sasuke jumped up and threw the weapon, Zabuza being confident, if not overly so. The thing was, Sasuke wasn't aiming for the clone, he was aiming for the original. Zabuza caught the shuriken easily, but barely foresaw the second shuriken in the first shuriken's shadow. Zabuza was still able to dodge it though, by jumping over it, but what none of us expected, was the shuriken to turn into Naruto.

Surprising even Zabuza, Naruto threw a kunai at him and he was forced to release Kakashi in order to not be killed. I could immediately tell though, that Zabuza was pissed. More pissed than he had been and I worried about Naruto's safety when Zabuza took the large shuriken and charged. Using up probably the last of my strength, I pumped chakra into my feet and made it there just in time to stop the shuriken along with Kakashi.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura shouted in joy.

"Naruto, great plan." Kakashi commented. "You guys have grown up."

"Heh, I got distracted and released the jutsu." Zabuza said, acting as though he wasn't fooled for a minute.

"Wrong. You didn't release it. You were _forced_ to release it."

"You underestimated them again, Zabuza. When will you stop making the same mistake?" I questioned, eyes wild as I quivered in place, just _wanting_ to tear a piece out of him.

"Mako." Kakashi said. "I'll take care of him."

I growled and Kakashi gave me a look, but I reluctantly backed off, going to pull Naruto out of the water.

"I'll tell you that I don't fall for the same jutsu twice." Kakashi continued, speaking to Zabuza. "What will you do?"

The two of them jumped away from each other and rapidly began doing the same exact hand-signs. As I felt the water shift underneath me, I quickly grabbed Naruto by the collar and jumped up into a tree where I left him.

"Hey! Why did you—"

"Stay there!" I shouted and, surprisingly, he listened.

Hurrying, I grabbed the others and gave them a boost into the trees before telling Tazuna to get on my back so I could do the same with him.

"I would, but your wound…"

I glared at him and he flinched. "Get. On. Or. Drown."

He nodded and climbed on as I jumped up into a tree, just in time.

Two huge water dragons attacked each other out of the lake, the water flowing over where the group would've been should they had just stayed there. As Kakashi and Zabuza ran around on the water, once it had settled, they spoke lowly but I could tell that Zabuza was being completely unnerved by whatever it was Kakashi was saying. This time, Zabuza was beat as Kakashi finished the jutsu and another huge wave roared over, slamming Zabuza against a tree trunk.

All I heard from Kakashi was, "You're going to die."

Just before he did kill Zabuza though, a couple of senbon flew from another tree and stabbed Zabuza through the neck. A new figure had shown up and I immediately remembered something I had overlooked before. _The rabbit…he spoke of a boy…a dark sparrow, he called him._ I jumped back down from the tree with Tazuna and let him off my back, looking to go get the others, but they were already on their way down, which was good. _I don't think I can stand anymore._ I stared down at my shaking limbs as I stayed crouch on the ground, listening.

"Thank you very much. I have been searching for the opportunity to kill Zabuza for a long time." The boy said, bowing slightly.

"That mask…You're a Hidden Mist hunter-nin."

"Impressive. You are correct."

It wasn't long, before my ears began to fail on me. All the voices around me turned into a dull hum, and even Naruto's yelling didn't quite pierce through the haze I was in. I vaguely felt Crow land on my shoulder, but nothing he said was registering. He then flew off and I wondered what he was doing, before my mind turned to my wound. Looking down, I pulled my shaking hand away staring at the blood. I could hear my own breathing; my own heartbeat, but that was it, until someone placed a hand on my shoulder.

"Mako! Mako! Can you hear me?! Hey, stay with me!"

I looked up lazily to see Kakashi looking at me with…concern. _Why? Why does he care for me? Aren't I…a monster?_ My mind then began to fade into black and I fell into his arms as the hum in my head grew louder. _I'm sorry. I can't move, but…I protected them, right?…I did good….I'm not a monster._


End file.
